Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass: The Story Behind an American Friendship Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass: The Story Behind an American Friendship / Russell Freedman
From the author of Lincoln: A Photobiography, comes a clear-sighted, carefully researched account of two surprisingly parallel lives and how they intersected at a critical moment in U.S. history. Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass were both self-taught, both great readers and believers in the importance of literacy, both men born poor who by their own efforts reached positions of power and prominence - Lincoln as president of the United States and Douglass as the most famous and influential African American of his time. Though their meetings were few and brief, their exchange of ideas helped to end the Civil War, reunite the nation, and abolish slavery.
Bad Girls: Sirens, Jezebels, Murderesses, Thieves, and Other Female Villains Bad Girls: Sirens, Jezebels, Murderesses, Thieves, and Other Female Villains / Jane Yolen and Heidi E. Y. Stemple
Mother-daughter collaborators Yolen and Stemple, who previously partnered with Guay on The Barefoot Book of Ballet Stories, revisit the lives and legendary misdeeds of 26 notorious women in this often witty chronological romp. Jezebel, Salome, Calamity Jane, Mata Hari, and many more get their own brief chapters, complete with punny subtitles ("Delilah: A Mere Snip of a Girl"). The team's tight, droll storytelling maintains a light tone: "Always conscious of her image, Bonnie [Parker] asked one kidnapped police officer to tell everyone she did not smoke cigars.... She may have been an outlaw, but she was not a smoker!" Comics sections from Guay end each chapter, showing Yolen and Stemple debating, via Socratic repartee, the guiltiness of each femme fatale, an entertaining if slightly egregious bit of authorial intrusion. If the authors' banter hasn't prompted readers to question the badness of these bad girls, the conclusion directly solicits the consideration: "Would we still consider these women bad? Or would we consider them victims of bad circumstances?" An extensive bibliography and index wrap up this narrative of nefarious-or not?-women. (Publisher's Weekly)
Bird King: An Artist's Notebook Bird King: An Artist's Notebook / Shaun Tan
"Why isn't the finished work as good as the sketch?" Tan (The Arrival) asks in the introduction to this collection of loose illustrations and rough ideas, wondering why drawings lose their spontaneity as they undergo revision. These sketches took little time to make, he says, and some "barely escaped the paper-recycling bin." Fascinated with hybrids, Tan draws cyclopean monsters with claws and tentacles, light bulbs with tails, cars with antennae, and a flower whose bloom is a single human eye. A section of full-color paintings and drawings offers rich and complex layers of pigment, lush shadows, and startling highlights of scarlet and magenta. In one, an Asian man wearing glasses holds the hand of a small boy on a sidewalk; "Dad + me," reads the legend. A careful set of sketches records pre-Columbian artifacts; another, just as earnest, invents a character alphabet for an undersea civilization; a cover sketch for Margo Lanagan's Tender Morsels also appears. The sharing of unfinished work is a generous gesture, and the collection is a treasure trove for any young artist who wants to know more about how ideas are captured on paper. (Publisher's Weekly)
Bookmarked: Teen Essays on Life and Literature from Tolkien to Twilight Bookmarked: Teen Essays on Life and Literature from Tolkien to Twilight / edited by Ann Camacho
In more than 50 essays, young people from a wide range of backgrounds reflect on how words from literature connect with and influence their lives. The essays explore topics including suffering the death of a parent, facing a life-threatening illness, letting go of perfectionism, making friends, realizing goals, and grappling with questions of faith and sexuality. Each essay includes a brief biographical sketch letting the reader know where the essay writer is today. Teachers, guidance counselors, and parents working with teens on personal essays - including for college applications - will find that the book presents a varied, intriguing group of essays to use as samples, models, and inspiration. Teachers of literature, writing, and language arts classes can also use these essays to help teens explore literature - and their own responses to it - through writing. There are questions to prompt conversation, writing, and deeper consideration of the issues raised. The back matter includes tips and ideas for teachers and teens on how to use the book, including ways to use it as a jumping-off point for creating personal essays.
Bulu: African Wonder Dog Bulu: African Wonder Dog / Dick Houston
In the Nyanja language, bulu means wild dog, and that's what Steve and Anna Tolan named the beloved little Jack Russell mix they adopted. Disregarding warnings about the dangers of raising a dog in the bush, the Tolans moved from England to rural Zambia to fulfill their lifelong dream of setting up an animal rescue and conservation center. What they never imagined were the incredible bonds Bulu would create, and the roller-coaster adventure of his life in the wild. He nursed and protected other animals in their care and had amazing radar to sense when dangerous predators were close. On various occasions his wanderlust led him directly into confrontations with attacking lions and a spitting cobra, in which he barely escaped with his life. Bulu's energy, high spirits, and loyalty to his masters make the book read like a praise song to dogs. Houston's account is an animal-lover's delight, complete with the action-adventure of surviving the bush, fighting poachers, and spreading a message of conservation.
Can I See Your I.D.? Can I See Your I.D.? / Chris Barton
True crime, desperation, fraud, and adventure: From the impoverished young woman who enchanted nineteenth-century British society as a faux Asian princess, to the sixteen-year-old boy who "stole" a subway train in 1993, to the lonely but clever Frank Abagnale of Catch Me if You Can fame, these ten vignettes offer riveting insight into mind-blowing masquerades. Graphic panels draw you into the exploits of these pretenders, and meticulously researched details keep you on the edge of your seat. Each scene is presented in the second person, a unique point of view that literally places you inside the faker's mind. With motivations that include survival, delusion, and plain, old-fashioned greed, the psychology of deception has never been so fascinating or so close at hand.
Charles and Emma: The Darwin's Leap of Faith Charles and Emma: The Darwin's Leap of Faith / Deborah Heiligman
Charles Darwin published The Origin of Species, his revolutionary tract on evolution and the fundamental ideas involved, in 1859. 150 years later, the theory of evolution continues to create tension between the scientific and religious communities. This same debate raged within Darwin himself, and played an important part in his marriage: his wife, Emma, was very religious, and her faith challenged Charles as he worked on his theory of evolution. Deborah Heiligman's new biography of Charles Darwin is a thought-provoking account of the man behind evolutionary theory: how his personal life affected his work and vice versa. The end result is an engaging exploration of history, science, and religion.
Chasing Lincoln's Killer Chasing Lincoln's Killer / James Swanson
Based on rare archival material, obscure trial manuscripts, and interviews with relatives of the conspirators and the manhunters, this fast-paced thriller that tells the story of the pursuit and capture of John Wilkes Booth and gives a day-by-day account of the wild chase to find this killer and his accomplices. Based on James Swanson's bestselling adult book Manhunt: The 12-Day Chase for Lincoln's Killer, this young people's version is an accessible look at the assassination of a president, and shows readers Abraham Lincoln the man, the father, the husband, the friend, and how his death impacted those closest to him.
Chasing the High: A Firsthand Account of One Young Person's Experience with Substance Abuse Chasing the High: A Firsthand Account of One Young Person's Experience with Substance Abuse / Kyle Keegan
Kyle Keegan was like many teenagers: eager to fit in at school, he experimented with alcohol and drugs. Soon, his abuse of these substances surpassed experimentation and became a ruthless addiction to heroin that nearly destroyed his life. Now in recovery, Keegan tells his remarkable story in Chasing the High. Starting with the early days of alcohol and drug use, Keegan charts his decline into crime and homelessness as his need for heroin surpassed all thoughts of family and friends, of right and wrong. He then goes on to use these experiences to offer guidance and practical advice to other young people who may be struggling with substance abuse. In straightforward, easy-to-understand language and along with the psychiatric expertise of Howard Moss, MD, Keegan discusses what is known about the neurobiology of addiction in young people, how to seek treatment, and how to get the most out of professional help. He also covers such topics as which therapies are used to combat addiction, how to talk to family and friends about substance abuse, and how to navigate risky situations. Both an absorbing memoir and a useful resource for young people. Part of the Adolescent Mental Health Initiative series of books written specifically for teens and young adults, Chasing the High is at once both an absorbing memoir and a useful resource. It offers hope to those who are struggling with substance abuse and will help them to overcome its challenges and to go on to lead healthy, productive lives.
Chicken Soup for the Soul: Teens Talk High School Chicken Soup for the Soul: Teens Talk High School / compiled by Jack Canfield
A collection of 101 stories for high school students written by other teens and by adults about their experiences in high school. All stories are true personal anecdotes covering a range of topics from funny and embarrassing moments to teen love and friendship, family issues, self-respect, and others.
Cleopatra Rules! The Amazing Life of the Original Teen Queen Cleopatra Rules! The Amazing Life of the Original Teen Queen / Vicky Alvear Shecter
Julius Caesar was "a player," Marc Antony a "good ol' boy." Caesar Augustus, once a "snot-nosed, knobby-kneed, pimply-faced peon," presents himself as a "stud" after defeating Antony at Actium. Cleopatra started life as a "bookish nerd." Readers are either going to love or hate the popped-up tone of this well-documented history of "the original teen queen." Shecter packs it full of irreverent metaphors ("Egyptians believed that a soul without a body was like a hotdog without a bun") and up-to-date recontextualizations (referring to the Donations of Alexandria: "Imagine the outrage if the vice president of the United States suddenly gave away parts of Alaska"). Short chapters with banner headlines every few paragraphs organize Cleopatra's action-packed life into easily processed pieces...Most importantly, Shecter addresses and questions preconceptions about Cleopatra that have proliferated throughout Western culture since Plutarch. Whatever one thinks of the style, the scholarship is sound: in this case, a spoonful of Pop-Rocks may help the Ptolemies go down. (Paula Willey, Baltimore County Public Library, School Library Journal)
Danger in the Desert: True Adventures of a Dinosaur Hunter Danger in the Desert: True Adventures of a Dinosaur Hunter / Roger Cohen
World-famous paleontologist Roy Chapman Andrews, heralded as a real-life Indiana Jones, apparently had more lives than a cat. He once opined, "I can remember just ten times when I had really narrow escapes from death." Here, readers get a fascinating glimpse of his near-death experiences and all of his adventures in between. Raised in Wisconsin, Andrews was an avowed naturalist from an early age. He dabbled in hunting and, by the time he was in high school, he was considered a local taxidermy expert. After college, he journeyed to New York where he begged for a job at the American Museum of Natural History, offering to scrub the floors in exchange for a position. His hard work, intelligence, and tenacity soon paid off, and Andrews began a series of expeditions ranging from a whaling excursion in the Pacific Northwest to a government-intelligence mission in the Far East. His adventures culminated in a voyage to Mongolia, where he and his team stumbled across one of the biggest finds in paleontological history: The Flaming Cliffs of the Gobi Desert, a veritable treasure trove of dinosaur fossils. Readers will be riveted by Andrews's exploits, including being marooned on a deserted island and surviving a typhoon in Japan.
Dear Teen Me Dear Teen Me / edited by E. Kristin Anderson and Miranda Kenneally
In 2010, writers Anderson and Kenneally launched a blog where authors posted letters written to themselves as teenagers; more than 70 of those entries are gathered in this book, from Tom Angleberger, Ellen Hopkins, Mitali Perkins, Dave Roman, Sara Zarr, and more. The letters are self-deprecating ("Let's just start by ripping off the Band-Aid," says Robin Benway. "You need to let your bangs grow out"), encouraging ("Go ahead and embrace life on the social fringes," advises Beth Fantaskey), and revealing ("Even though you don't drink, a certain very cruel, very callous guy is drinking - and there's nothing I can do now to stop that thing from happening," writes Carrie Jones). The breadth of emotion and experience the entries cover guarantee that almost any reader will identify with some of the situations and anxieties expressed. (Publisher's Weekly)
Discovering Wes Moore Discovering Wes Moore / Wes Moore
Moore adapts his bestselling adult title, The Other Wes Moore, for teens in this thought-provoking and personal narrative about two men with the same name. Moore begins with his own story, which starts in Baltimore and moves to the crack-infested Bronx, military school, Johns Hopkins, and a Rhodes Scholarship. The second part of the book tells the other Wes Moore's journey, which also begins in Baltimore but leads to drug dealing, brushes with the police, and a life sentence for murder. Anecdotes from Moore's early years convey his struggle to form an identitywithin his violent and impoverished surroundings; his love for his family and his core optimism shine through even the darkest moments he recounts. The story concludes with Moore's questions and ruminations about how, regardless of limitations and societal expectations, the decisions an individual makes determine who he or she will become. Moore wisely opens the door for teens to contemplate their own answers and beliefs, while laying out his own experiences honestly and openly. (Publisher's Weekly)
Eiger Dreams: Adventures Among Men and Mountains Eiger Dreams: Adventures Among Men and Mountains / John Krakauer
Paperback reprint of best-selling American author Krakauer's 1990 collection of stories about some of the men and women who are captivated by the world of mountains and mountain climbing. Versions of eleven of the 12 chapters were previously published in various magazines, including Outside and Smithsonian.
Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony: A Friendship that Changed the World Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony: A Friendship that Changed the World / Penny Colman
In the Spring of 1851 two women met on a street corner in Seneca Falls, New York - Elizabeth Cady Stanton, a thirty-five year old mother of four boys, and Susan B. Anthony, a thirty-one year old, unmarried, former school teacher. Immediately drawn to each other, they formed an everlasting and legendary friendship. Together they challenged entrenched beliefs, customs, and laws that oppressed women and spearheaded the fight to gain legal rights, including the right to vote despite fierce opposition, daunting conditions, scandalous entanglements and betrayal by their friends and allies. Weaving events, quotations, personalities, and commentary into a page-turning narrative, Penny Colman tells this compelling story and vividly portrays the friendship between Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony, a friendship that changed history.
Escape From the Deep: The Epic Story of a Legendary Submarine and Her Courageous Crew Escape From the Deep: The Epic Story of a Legendary Submarine and Her Courageous Crew / Alex Kershaw
Popular historian Kershaw (The Bedford Boys) chronicles the extraordinary WWII heroism of the crew of the USS Tang, "the deadliest submarine operating in the Pacific," in this spellbinding saga. The Tang's captain, Cmdr. Richard O'Kane, was a celebrated maverick whose "contempt for the enemy was absolute." He was offered the opportunity to operate alone in the dangerous Formosa Strait, and the boat's crew sank 13 ships on "one of the most destructive patrols of the war." But the last torpedo malfunctioned and boomeranged on the Tang, killing half the crew instantly and sinking the sub. The explosion threw O'Kane and several others into the ocean, but most of the rest were trapped below; only nine of 87 survived. They were picked up by a Japanese patrol boat and taken to a POW camp, tortured and starved. O'Kane, who earned the Medal of Honor, weighed only 88 pounds when liberated. Relying on interviews with survivors and oral histories, and writing with his customary verve, Kershaw delivers another memorable tale of uncommon courage.
Every Bone Tells a Story: Hominin Discoveries, Deductions, and Debates Every Bone Tells a Story: Hominin Discoveries, Deductions, and Debates / Jill Rubalcaba
Archaeology and paleontology are the exciting focus in this accessible account of four hominins who lived long before recorded history. The authors explore not only how and where their remains were discovered but also what they tell scientists today about how they lived and why they died out. Were Neanderthals brainy or brutish? Man or beast? When did language begin? The informal style never oversimplifies the gripping science and technology, and the authors raise as many questions as they answer in the detailed chapters, which cover each of the four fossils and the research and debate that surround them.
Ghosts of War: The True Story of a 19-year-old GI Ghosts of War: The True Story of a 19-year-old GI / Ryan Smithson
In this raw and powerful memoir, veteran Smithson recounts his time as an army engineer in Iraq. As a student in suburban Albany, he joins the army after 9/11. While in Iraq, he's shot at and faces mortar attack, but he spends more time on responsibilities like methodical cleanups of roadside bomb craters-work that's as vital, if not as sexy, as actual combat. Smithson's interactions with Iraqi children and families, as much as with his fellow soldiers, drive the story. Military biography cliches-from the indoctrination of boot camp ("they break us down, build us up, break us down again, and then build us back up") to resentment of officers among the enlisted-abound because they're no doubt true. But the real meat of the book is in Smithson's dealings with American noncombatants, from the little boy who sends care packages to the pilot who insists on upgrading him to first class and his wife and parents. Smithson avoids writing either prowar propaganda or an antimilitary polemic, providing instead a fascinating, often humorous-and occasionally devastating-account of the motivations and life of a contemporary soldier.
Girls Against Girls: Why We Are Mean to Each Other and How We Can Change Girls Against Girls: Why We Are Mean to Each Other and How We Can Change / Bonnie Burton
You probably know what it?s like to be on the receiving end of another girl's wrath. Most of us have been gossiped about, ignored, teased, taunted online, or even threatened by other girls. And you'll even realize - if you do some real soul-searching - that you too can be the mean girl from time to time. But why do we act this way? And what can we do about it? Those are the questions Bonnie Burton asks and answers in Girls Against Girls.Complete with movie quotes, advice from female artists and athletes, and a resource section of girl-power organizations, Girls Against Girls is a must-read for today's strong, smart, and capable generation of young women.
How to (Un)cage a Girl How to (Un)cage a Girl / Francesca Lia Block
These poems traverse the steep climb from girlhood to womanhood while unearthing the hard truths hidden within this journey. Divided into three parts - "Years at the Asylum," "In the Hair of the Toxic Blonde," and "Love Poems for Girls" - the collection touches on anorexia, self-love and loathing, parental relationships, superficiality, losing one's virginity, rape, and love and loss. Block celebrates womanhood, but not in a bubblegum, girl-power way. Plathian symbols abound, from pervasive father issues to Nazi comparisons to insane asylums, real and imagined. The poems feel simultaneously autobiographical and universal. While the death of the narrator's father in "A Myth of Love for Girls" colors her search for a partner, the universal struggle of women to escape or find their father's image in future relationships is aptly captured. The final selections cross into the territory of life lessons learned well beyond the teen experience and perhaps ring too much like motherly advice, but the raw authenticity of the narrator's voice throughout overshadows any later departure. Teenage girls, especially sophisticated, angst-filled poetry readers, will devour this insightful and powerful collection.
I Choose to be Happy: A School Shooting Survivor's Triumph Over Tragedy I Choose to be Happy: A School Shooting Survivor's Triumph Over Tragedy / Missy Jenkins
On December 1, 1997, 15-year-old Missy Jenkins was wounded by Michael Carneal at their high school in West Paducah, KY, in one of the first school shootings in the United States. She was instantly paralyzed from the chest down as she watched him kill three of her classmates and injure four more. This memoir explains the horrific events of that day and all the difficult days that followed. The author's message is one of hope and forgiveness - she writes frequently of how important it was for her to forgive Michael and move forward with her life. She also talks extensively about living each day to the fullest and appreciating all that she has, regardless of her disability. Jenkins credits her faith in God in helping her to heal both physically and mentally. Her story is inspiring and compelling.
Impossible Rescue Impossible Rescue / Martin Sandler
The dead of an Arctic winter. Whaling ships full of men, stranded in ice. Follow three rescuers in a race against time - and all odds - in this heartpounding true adventure. In 1897, whaling in the Arctic waters off Alaska's coast was as dangerous as it was lucrative. And in that particular year, winter blasted early, bringing storms and ice packs that caught eight American whale ships and three hundred sailors off guard. Their ships locked in ice, with no means of escape, the whalers had limited provisions on board, and little hope of surviving until warmer temperatures arrived many months later. Here is the incredible story of three men sent by President McKinley to rescue them. The mission? A perilous trek over 1,500 miles of nearly impassable Alaskan terrain, in the bone-chilling months of winter, to secure two herds of reindeer (for food) and find a way to guide them to the whalers before they starve. With the help of photographs and journal entries by one of the rescuers, Martin W. Sandler takes us on every step of their riveting journey, facing raging blizzards, killing cold, injured sled dogs, and setbacks to test the strongest of wills.
IraqiGirl: Diary of a Teenage Girl in Iraq IraqiGirl: Diary of a Teenage Girl in Iraq / edited by Elizabeth Wrigley-Field
"I heard the sound of bombing and bullets and I couldn't concentrate." Despite all the news coverage about the war in Iraq, very little is reported about how it affects the daily lives of ordinary citizens. A high-schooler in the city of Mosul fills in the gap with this compilation of her blog posts, illustrated with photos, about living under U.S. occupation. She writes in English because she wants to reach Americans, and in stark specifics, she records the terrifying dangers of car bombs on her street and American warplanes overhead, as well as her everyday struggles to concentrate on homework when there is no water and electricity at home. Her tone is balanced: she does not hate Americans, and although she never supported Saddam Hussein, she wonders why he was executed. There are some repetitive passages, but readers will appreciate the details about family, friends, school, and reading Harry Potter, as well as the ever-present big issues for which there are no simple answers.
Lost in Place: Growing Up Absurb in Suburbia Lost in Place: Growing Up Absurb in Suburbia / Mark Salzman
Salzman, critically acclaimed author of The Soloist (1994), here pens a gentle memoir of his teenage years that is also a loving tribute to his gloomy father. Salzman humorously describes his tortured attempts to adopt the lifestyle of a Zen monk as an eccentric adolescent growing up in Ridgefield, Connecticut. To that end, he rigged up a homemade kung fu outfit consisting of purple pajamas and a bald wig (his younger brother's withering comments on this getup are priceless), took martial arts lessons from a sadist, and walked to school barefoot in the snow to instill fortitude. In between describing his obsession with things Chinese (he learned to speak Chinese as well as to do Chinese brush painting and calligraphy), Salzman also relays his efforts to become a jazz cellist and his larky attempt to gain early admission to Yale. But the highlights of this book are Salzman's conversations with his father, a pessimistic social worker who was also an avid amateur astronomer. No Cosby clone, his dad often dispensed rather acerbic advice. When Salzman once asked him how cosmic dust could drift in space forever, he replied, "Nobody knows. But you'll have a better idea once you get a job." Almost old-fashioned in its depiction of a good-natured kid with loving parents, this delightful memoir will easily win your heart.
Master of Deceit: J. Edgar Hoover and America in the Age of Lies Master of Deceit: J. Edgar Hoover and America in the Age of Lies / Marc Aronson
"[T]his book is not and should not be just about Hoover," Aronson (Trapped) tells readers in the epilogue to this wide-ranging, extensively researched, and detailed biography of the controversial 20th-century FBI director. He's not kidding: Hoover's story unfolds against the tumultuous immigrant history of the U.S. and the growth of the FBI, which Hoover molded for more than 40 years. Hoover emerges as a magnified example of abusive governmental power, portrayed as a controlling conformist who was organized, intelligent, sexually suppressed, and manipulative. Aronson's stimulating questions ("[W]ho is the bigger liar: the capitalist who teases the poor with images of goods they cannot afford or the Communist who hypnotizes the masses with empty slogans and false ideals?"), and his occasional use of first- and second-person, will wake up readers accustomed to less in-your-face historical narratives. The book does an excellent job of creating parallels between America's anticommunist efforts and the current fight against terrorism as it questions the price of security and the media's roles in keeping secrets. Period photographs, movie posters, cartoons, and FBI documents supplement a biography abounding in historical context.
Mountains Beyond Mountains: The Quest of Dr. Paul Farmer, a Man Who Would Cure the World Mountains Beyond Mountains: The Quest of Dr. Paul Farmer, a Man Who Would Cure the World / Tracy Kidder (adapted by Michael French)
In this excellent work, Pulitzer Prize-winner Kidder (The Soul of a New Machine) immerses himself in and beautifully explores the rich drama that exists in the life of Dr. Paul Farmer. A Massachusetts native who has been working in Haiti since 1982, Farmer founded Zanmi Lasante (Creole for Partners in Health), a nongovernmental organization that is the only health-care provider for hundreds of thousands of peasant farmers in the Plateau Central. He did this while juggling work in Haiti and study at the Harvard Medical School (Farmer received his M.D. and a Ph.D. in anthropology simultaneously in 1990.) During his work in Haiti, Farmer pioneered a community-based treatment method for patients with tuberculosis that, Kidder explains, has had better clinical outcomes than those in U.S. inner cities. For this work, Farmer was recognized in 1993 with a MacArthur Foundation "genius grant," all of which he donated to Zanmi Lasante. Using interviews with family members and various friends and associates, Kidder provides a sympathetic account of Farmer's early life, from his idiosyncratic family to his early days in Haiti. Kidder also recounts his time with Farmer as he travels to Moscow; Lima, Peru; Boston; and other cities where Farmer relentlessly seeks funding and educates people about the hard conditions in Haiti. (Publisher's Weekly)
Rapture Practice Rapture Practice / Aaron Hartzler
Sometimes salvation is found in the strangest places: a true story. Aaron Hartzler grew up in a home where he was taught that at any moment the Rapture could happen. That Jesus might come down in the twinkling of an eye and scoop Aaron and his family up to heaven. As a kid, Aaron was thrilled by the idea that every moment of every day might be his last one on planet Earth. But as Aaron turns sixteen, he finds himself more attached to his earthly life and curious about all the things his family forsakes for the Lord. He begins to realize he doesn't want the Rapture to happen just yet - not before he sees his first movie, stars in the school play, or has his first kiss. Eventually Aaron makes the plunge from conflicted do-gooder to full-fledged teen rebel. Whether he's sneaking out, making out, or playing hymns with a hangover, Aaron learns a few lessons that can't be found in the Bible. He discovers that the best friends aren't always the ones your mom and dad approve of, and the tricky part about believing is that no one can do it for you. In this funny and heartfelt coming-of-age memoir, debut author Aaron Hartzler recalls his teenage journey to find the person he is without losing the family that loves him. It's a story about losing your faith and finding your place and your own truth - which is always stranger than fiction.
Red Scarf Girl: A Memoir of the Cultural Revolution Red Scarf Girl: A Memoir of the Cultural Revolution / Ji-Li Jiang
Ji-Li Jiang was a model little Communist. Devoted to Chairman Mao, firm in her desire to be the best possible student so that she could further the aims of China, Ji-Li was secure in her place as one of the foremost students in a Shanghai school, and just as happy as the eldest daughter of a theatrical family. Then in 1966, when Ji-Li was 12, her world turned upside down. Chairman Mao launched the Cultural Revolution and suddenly everything formerly good was bad - including excellent students, such as Ji-Li. To make matters worse, Ji-Li's grandfather was a landowner, another black mark against her family. Jiang's simple narrative voice is always true to the girl she was as events in China swirled into chaos. She captures both the confusion she felt as the ground under her feet constantly shifted and her sincerity in trying to do the right thing for her ostracized family and her country. The book's climax, in which Ji-Li is forced to choose between her future and her father, whom the government wanted her to denounce, will affect readers, who have been carefully led to this point by Ji-Li's chronicle of humiliations, beatings, and relocations. Young people who have little knowledge of Chinese history may have trouble at first understanding a society so different from ours, but Jiang's engrossing memoir transcends politics and becomes the story of one little girl trying to survive the madness.
Rescue Artist: A True Story of Art, Thieves, and the Hunt for a Missing Masterpiece Rescue Artist: A True Story of Art, Thieves, and the Hunt for a Missing Masterpiece / Edward Dolnick
A compelling account of the 1994 theft of one of the world's most famous paintings, The Scream. Dolnick focuses on the hero of the case, Scotland Yard's Art Squad specialist Charley Hill. Because of Hill's earlier success in retrieving stolen art treasures, he was charged with the difficult job of locating the painting and successfully retrieving it in its original condition. While the author keeps readers in suspense as he digresses frequently to tell the story of other notorious art thefts and art thieves, diligent readers will be treated to a nail-biting, edge-of-your-seat account of the painting's rescue. Along the way, Dolnick imparts a great deal of information not only about Edvard Munch, but also about the art world's surprisingly lax security measures and the lack of motivation on the part of authorities charged with retrieving art treasures. In spite of the asides, this is a tightly woven, fast-paced story. Teens interested in art and/or investigative journalism will enjoy this real-life whodunit.
Seabiscuit: An American Legend Seabiscuit: An American Legend / Laura Hillenbrand
Seabiscuit was one of the most electrifying and popular attractions in sports history and the single biggest newsmaker in the world in 1938, receiving more coverage than FDR, Hitler, or Mussolini. But his success was a surprise to the racing establishment, which had written off the crooked-legged racehorse with the sad tail. Three men changed Seabiscuit’s fortunes: Charles Howard was a onetime bicycle repairman who introduced the automobile to the western United States and became an overnight millionaire. When he needed a trainer for his new racehorses, he hired Tom Smith, a mysterious mustang breaker from the Colorado plains. Smith urged Howard to buy Seabiscuit for a bargain-basement price, then hired as his jockey Red Pollard, a failed boxer who was blind in one eye, half-crippled, and prone to quoting passages from Ralph Waldo Emerson. Over four years, these unlikely partners survived a phenomenal run of bad fortune, conspiracy, and severe injury to transform Seabiscuit from a neurotic, pathologically indolent also-ran into an American sports icon.
Seize the Story: A Handbook for Teens Who Like to Write Seize the Story: A Handbook for Teens Who Like to Write / Victoria Hanley
Capturing readers' attention from the very first page, this book is an excellent resource for both teenagers and their teachers. From the development of characters, setting, voice, style, and plot, to the end with rewriting and polishing, readers are able to hone their writing skills. By using the "building your story" activities at the end of each chapter, they have opportunity to apply the techniques presented and experience the whole process. Hanley uses examples from familiar novels and authors such as Harry Potter and Stephenie Meyer's Twilight to illustrate elements of writing. The book concludes with interviews with young adult authors, in which they include advice to aspiring young writers.
Sentenced to Life at Seventeen: The Story of David Milgaard Sentenced to Life at Seventeen: The Story of David Milgaard / Cynthia J. Faryon
David Milgaard was a troubled kid, and he got into lots of trouble. Unfortunately, that made it easy for the Saskatoon police to brand him as a murderer. At seventeen, David Milgaard was arrested, jailed, and convicted for the rape and murder of a young nursing assistant, Gail Miller. He was sent to adult prison for life. Throughout his twenty-three years in prison, David maintained that he was innocent and refused to admit to the crime, even though it meant he was never granted parole. Finally, through the incredible determination of his mother and new lawyers who believed in him, David was released and proven not guilty. Astonishingly, in hindsight the real murderer was obvious from the start. This is the true story of how bad decisions, tunnel vision, poor representation, and outright lying and coercion by those within the justice system caused a tragic miscarriage of justice. It also shows that wrongs can be righted and amends made.
Strutting it! Strutting it! / Jeanne Beker
Who wouldn't want to wear gorgeous clothes, travel the world, hang out with stars, have adoring fans - and get paid a fortune for it? But is that what the life of a model is like? World-famous fashion guru Jeanne Beker offers a unique insider's look at the reality behind the glitz. She demystifies the industry for those who are thinking about a career in modeling and for those who simply want the scoop on an intriguing world. Strutting It! is full of fascinating information, from getting discovered to finding a personal style, from the team of people behind every model to the education a good model should have. With a foreword by modeling superstar Coco Rocha, Strutting It! is packed with biographies of successful models, lots of black-and-white photos, and the great humor and common sense Jeanne Beker is known for.
Temple Grandin: How the Girl who Loved Cows Embraced Autism and Changed the World Temple Grandin: How the Girl who Loved Cows Embraced Autism and Changed the World / Sy Montgomery
When Temple Grandin was born, her parents knew that she was different. Years later she was diagnosed with autism. While Temple's doctor recommended a hospital, her mother believed in her. Temple went to school instead. Today, Dr. Temple Grandin is a scientist and professor of animal science at Colorado State University. Her world-changing career revolutionized the livestock industry. As an advocate for autism, Temple uses her experience as an example of the unique contributions that autistic people can make. This compelling biography complete with Temple's personal photos takes us inside her extraordinary mind and opens the door to a broader understanding of autism.
Tiger in the Attic Tiger in the Attic / Edith Milton
Unlike most accounts of the Kindertransport, the underground railroad-like venture that saved about 10,000 Jewish children from the Holocaust and found homes for them in England, this memoir is not about the trauma left behind or the wrenching family separation. Milton's focus is on her childhood experience of arriving from Germany at age seven in 1939; living with a kind, upper-class Leeds family; and then, after the war, being forced to leave for New Jersey to reunite with the mother she never missed. Looking back now, she admits her nostalgia has a slightly acrid edge; in fact, she questions the validity of memory. In a moving climax, she confronts her denial about what she escaped from but, far from lachrymose self-importance, her acerbic commentary stops you short: those who prevail with dignity don't look for meaning where there is none. The truth of each sentence brings home the happiness and the anguish of the survivor who never forgets the extraordinary privilege of having been granted a reasonably ordinary life.
Trapped: How the World Rescued 33 Miners from 2,000 feet Below the Chilean Desert Trapped: How the World Rescued 33 Miners from 2,000 feet Below the Chilean Desert / Marc Aronson
In early August 2010, the unthinkable happened when a mine collapsed in CopiapÓ, Chile, and 33 miners were trapped 2,000 feet below the surface. For sixty-nine days they lived on meager resources and increasingly poor air quality. When they were finally rescued, the world watched with rapt attention and rejoiced in the amazing spirit and determination of the miners. What could have been a terrible tragedy became an amazing story of survival. Now, with exclusive interviews with rescuers and expert commentary, Marc Aronson brings us the backstory behind this incredible event. By tracing the psychological, physical, and environmental factors surrounding the rescue, Trapped highlights the amazing technology and helping hands that made it all possible. From the Argentinean soccer players who hoped to raise morale, to NASA volunteering their expertise to come up with a plan, there was no shortage of enterprising spirit when it came to saving lives.
We all Fall Down: Living with Addiction We all Fall Down: Living with Addiction / Nic Sheff
In his bestselling memoir Tweak, Nic Sheff took readers on an emotionally gripping roller-coaster ride through his days as a crystal meth and heroin addict. Now in this powerful follow-up about his continued efforts to stay clean, Nic writes candidly about eye-opening stays at rehab centers, devastating relapses, and hard-won realizations about what it means to be a young person living with addiction.
Zoo Station Zoo Station / Christiane F.
In 1978 Christiane F. testified against a man who had traded heroin for sex with teenage girls at Berlin's notorious Zoo Station. In the course of that trial, Christiane F. became connected with two journalists, and over time they helped to turn her story-which begins with a dysfunctional but otherwise fairly normal childhood-into an acclaimed bestseller. Christiane F.'s rapid descent into heroin abuse and prostitution is shocking, but the boredom, the longing for acceptance, the thrilling risks, and even the musical obsessions that fill out the rest of Christiane's existence will be familiar to every reader. Christiane F.'s Berlin is a strange and often terrifying place, but it's also a place that remains closer than we might think…
Poudre River Public Library District
(970) 221-6740
Including the collection of
Front Range Community College, Larimer Campus
